I
tend to shy away from the approach to the nude that takes the body as
form without any reference to the person. Weston's work originally
inspired me but I found myself less moved by the purely abstract forms
he created than by the images of Tina Modotti and Charis Wilson in which
the person of the model played a part. I often leave a hint of the
model's face in images that other photographers might crop around. So as
I was going through the shots from my recent work with Elizabeth, I
began to think about what constitutes or represents the person of the
model. The face, of course. But this image, among others, made me think
about hands . . . how expressive and personal they can be. But do they
carry enough of who the model is to bring at least a bit of the person
into the frame? Is this image simply abstract and impersonal? Or do we
know a bit of the woman, too?